Fire-hose protector for tracks.



PATBNTBD 00T, 25, 1904. P. w. WHTKOWSKL VFIRE. HOSE vPImTBcTOR POR TRACKS.

l APPL-IOATIOI FILED IAB.. 22, 1904.

UNITED `STATES Patented october 25, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

FIR-E-HOSE PROTECTORV FOR TRACKS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 772,991, dated October 25, 1904.

Application filed March 22, 1904.

To @ZZ whom Ait may concern.-

Be it known that` I, FRIEDRICH WILHELMA WITTKowsKI, a citizen of the United States, residing at Des Moines, in the county of Polk and Stateof Iowa, have invented a certain new and useful Fire-'Hose Protector for Tracks, of which the following is a speciiication.

The objects of my invention are to provide an auxiliary track designed to be mountedon.

the rails of the ordinary street-railway track or steam-railway track which can be ea'sily vplaced on the' track and maintained securelyv in position relative thereto by the retaining` across the track, as is often the case in put-M ting outa fire in alarge city, by placing the auxiliary track onL the other track and the hose passed through the openings formedby the auxiliary track ythe passage of cars over the track will not be prevented by the hose extending across the track, as all of the cars can easily'and readily pass over the auxiliary track-owing to its peculiar construction.

My invention consistsn certain details in the construction, arrangement, and combination of the various parts of the device,` whereby the objects contemplated are attained, as hereinafter more fully set forth, pointed out in my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of the ordinarystreet-railway track with the auxiliary rails connected therewithand a hose extending across the street-railway track and through @the auxiliary track. Fig. 2 is aside elevation of one of the rails in the auxiliary track, showing an extra piece of rail in this track, and saidtrack is so constructed that two hosepipes can be passed over the street-railway track without interfering with the traflic.

Serial No. 199,360. (No model.)

ofthe auxiliary track is adapted to be used on 4the ordinary steam-railroad; and Fig. 5 is a sideelevation Iof one of the auxiliary-track rails.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, I have used the reference-numerals 10 and 11 to represent the rails of the ordinary streetvrailway track, upon which my track is designed tobe mounted. The auxiliary track is preferably made of two rails, which are to be placed upon the rails 10 and 11. As each of these'rails is similar in construction, I refer but to-one throughout the entire specifi cation, with the understanding that the other rail is exactly like the one described. Each of these rails comprises the parts 12 and 13. The part 12 is highestat that end of it which is designed to be placed in engagement with the part 13. Thetop portion of the rail extends away from the point of contact with the top portion of the part 12 and is substantially parallel with the bottom portionof the rail for some distance. It then is inclined downwardly to the extreme end of the part 12, which is away from thepart 13; The-part 12 is constructed like the ordinary rail in that it has a flanged portion 14, forming its top portion, and the liange'l, forming its lower portion. The part 13 is constructed exactly like the part 12, with the flange 16 at its upper portion and the 'ange 17 at its lower portion, and that portion of the top which is adjacent to the part 12 extends away from the party 12 for some distance in a plane parallel with the bottom 17, and then it inclines downwardly toits extreme end away from the point of engagement with the part 12. rThere is a semicircular portion cut out of the end of the part 12 which is adjacent to the part 13 toform the semicircular opening 18 therein. A similar portion is-cut out of the end ofthe part 13 to form the semicircular opening 19 in it,

lIo

so that when the parts 12 and 13 are in engagement with each other a circular opening is formed between these parts to admit the ordinary hose-pipe 20 through it.

I have provided the rail-chairs 21 and 22, which are designed to be connected to the parts 12 and 13, respectively, by the ordinary bolts, and these rail-chairs are held together by the curved ish-plate 23, so as to hold the parts 12 and 13 rigidly in engagement with each other. I have also provided the railchairs 24 and 25 of the same kind as the chairs 21 and 22 except that they are smaller size and adapted to hold the free ends of the parts 12 and 13 to the main-track rails. The railchairs are spiked to the pavement on the ties in the ordinary way.

The bottom of each 'part of the auxiliary rail has a projection 26, designed to engage the inside of the main-track rail and rest upon the flange 27 of the main-track rail, and thus more securely maintain the auxiliary rail against movement relative to the main-track rail. Inasmuch as the other rail of the auxiliary track is constructed like the above-described rail, a further description of it is deemed unnecessary. It is deemed advisable, however, to mention that between the ends of the parts 12 and 13, invvliich the semicircular openings 18 and 19 have been cut, a short piece of track 29 may be placed having the semicircular openings 30 and 31 in its end portions, the opening 31 with the opening 19 being designed to form a complete circular opening and the openings 18 and 30 being designed also to form another complete opening, so that two hose-pipes may be passed through the auxiliary track.

'In practical operation and assuming that the i'lre which is to be reached by the tire company is on one side of the track and the watersupply has to be obtained from the other side of the track and the hose is passed over the street-car track, the auxiliary track is placed in position so that the pipe extends through the openings in said track and the auxiliary track is secured to the main track in the way above described. The cars can then pass over the auxiliary track without difficulty and without interfering with vthe hose-pipe in any way. In case lthe auxiliary track is designed to. be attached to the ordinary railroadtrack a slightly diiferent construction of the auxiliary track is provided for; but the main features of the auxiliary track are similar to the one already described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States therefor, is-

1. An auxiliary track consisting of two track-rails, each of said track-rails comprising two parts designed to be placed in engagement with each other, each of said parts having a semicircular portion cut out of their l i i abutting ends to form a circular opening between them, the upper portion of the free ends of said parts being` inclined, means for securing the auxiliary track to the rails of the ordinary street-railway track, and a curved fish-plate for securing the parts of the auxiliary track to each-other.

2. An auxiliary track, consisting` of two track-rails, each of said track-rails comprising two parts designed to be placed in engagement with each other. each of said parts having a semicircular portion cut out of their abutting ends to form a circular opening between them, the upper portion of the free ends of said parts being inclined, and a curved {ish-plate for securing the parts of the auxiliary track to each other.

3. An auxiliary track, consisting of two track-rails, each of said track-rails comprising two parts designed to be placed in engagement with each other, each of said parts having a semicircular portion cut out of their abutting ends to form a circular opening between them, the upper portion of the free ends of said parts being inclined, a projection extending along the bottom portion of each rail of the auxiliary track, and a curved {ishplate for securing the parts of the auxiliary track to each other.

1. A main track, an auxiliary track having circular openings extending transversely of each rail thereof, designed to admit a hosepipe and tapered ends in said track, and a curved {ish-plate designed to secure the parts of each rail 'of the auxiliary track together.

5. A main track, an auxiliary track having circular openings extending transversely of each rail thereof, designed to admit a hosepipe and tapered ends in said track, a curved iish-plate designed to secure the parts of each rail of the auxiliary track together, and means for securing the auxiliary track to the main track.

6. A main track, an auxiliary track having circular openings extending transversely of each rail thereof, designed to admit a hosepipe and tapered ends in said track, a curved iish-plate designed to secure the parts of each rail of the auxiliary track together, means for securing the auxiliary track to the main track and a projection extending longitudinally of the body portion of the auxiliary track designed to engage the main track.

7. A main track, an auxiliary track consisting of two rails, each of said rails comprising a number of parts designed to be placed in engagement with each other, each of said parts having a semicircular portion cut out of their abutting ends to form a circular opening between them, the upper portion of the free ends of said parts being inclined, and a curved {ish-plate for securing the parts oi the auxiliary track to each other.

8. A main track, an auxiliary track consistlOO llO

ing of two rails, each of said rails comprising iary track to each other, and means for secura number of parts designed to be placed in ing the auxiliary track to rails ofa Street-rail- IO engagement with veach other,l each of Said Way track.

parts having a semicircular portioncut outof 5 their abutting ends to form a circular open- FRIEDRICH WILHELM WITQKO SKI' ing between them, the upper portion of the "Witnesses: free ends of said parts being inclined, a'curved W. R. LANE, {ish-plate for securing the parts ofthe auxil- S. F. CHRISTY. 

